


when tenzin became an airbender

by trappedoutside124



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra, Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, Family Feels, Friendship, Gaang (Avatar) as Family, One Big Happy Family, Other, Post-Episode: s03e18-21 Sozin's Comet, Reunions, Tenzin becomes an airbender, The gaang is grown up
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-27
Updated: 2020-06-27
Packaged: 2021-03-03 21:19:43
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,648
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24942196
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/trappedoutside124/pseuds/trappedoutside124
Summary: Until he was eight years old, Tenzin was a non-bender. Then, everything changed when his family went to visit the fire nation palace.A story of the Gaang's kids, and how Tenzin learned that he was an airbender, as well as everyone's reactions to the news.
Relationships: Aang/Katara (Avatar), Mai/Zuko (Avatar), The Gaang & Zuko (Avatar)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 191





	when tenzin became an airbender

"Bumi, Kya, wait!" called Tenzin, frantically running to catch up with his older siblings. They were running around the fire nation palace with Lin Beifong, Toph's daughter. 

"Catch up, Tenzin!" Bumi yelled back, rounding a corner into the courtyard. As Tenzin came around the corner, he nearly collided with Lin, who had stopped. "Sorry, Lin!" 

"Watch it, Tenzin," Lin groaned in response, punching him in the shoulder. Tenzin rubbed his shoulder and shot her a dirty look. 

"Here it is, everyone! The official training center of the Fire Nation Palace." Izumi said from in front of the group. The five of them stared at the giant grassy area from the top of the courtyard. Pools of water were scattered across the plain, as well as rocks of all sizes. Swords, arrows, and other weapons were stacked along the side of the courtyard. "C'mon, let's go!" 

The group took off down the stairs that led to the arena. Before Tenzin could reach the bottom, Bumi stopped him. "You shouldn't come, Tenzin. You could get hurt. And as your big brother, Mom and Dad put me in charge of you." 

"What?" Tenzin cried in disbelief, "You're a non-bender and you're going to play!" 

"I'm fifteen and have been training with Uncle Sokka for _years_ , 'Zin. You're only eight, buddy." Bumi saw stray tears gather in his brothers eyes. He sighed and knelt down, putting a hand on Tenzin's shoulder. "Look, you can sit and watch. And I promise I'll help you with your sword-fighting after dinner." Tenzin rubbed the corners of his eyes and willed himself not to cry. Finally, he nodded. 

"C'mon, Bumi!" Kya called, picking up some of the water and forming it into a ball. At only eleven years old, Kya was already showing signs of being a great waterbender. She was resourceful, but she also had a short attention span. Katara would start teaching her a move only to find that Kya had made up her own. She was very smart, but very mischievous--kind of like her father. Suddenly, a series of precise strikes sent boulders bursting through the water and sending it all over Kya. She pushed her now wet hair out of her face. "Lin, c'mon!" 

Lin Beifong was just like her mother. Her mom didn't go easy on her, and didn't cut her any slack. As a result, the nine-year-old was the best bender out of all of them. She was already learning to "see with her feet." She also had a sharp wit and a stubbornness to go along with it. "Oh come on, Kya. Have some fun!" 

Izumi, the other eight-year-old, stood in the corner next Bumi, who was trying to find the best sword out of the lot. "Hey Iz, want to come play?" Lin yelled, gesturing for her to come over. Izumi shook her head cautiously. She was a fire bender, but her her Mom and Dad had forbidden any firebending when they weren't watching, just in case she got hurt. She was only allowed to practice her breathing and stances, unless Zuko was there to guide her. He was fiercely protective over his only daughter, and knew all to well what could happen if someone was burned from uncontrolled bending. Still, she really wanted to play with her friends. So, after some more urging from Kya, she followed Bumi out onto the plain. 

Tenzin watched the other four start messing around with the elements, lobbing water and rock at each other while Bumi pretended to fight Izzy. He sighed and put his chin in his hands. He had been so looking forward to this trip to the fire nation to see all of his friends, but now he felt more left out than ever. His parents, uncle and aunt, and all of their friends had gotten together at the palace for a week. Some of it was for politics, and some was just to catch up. Either way, it meant that he got to see Lin and Izzy, and he never usually got to see them since they lived so far away from the South Pole. 

It also meant that he got to be reminded that he couldn't bend. 

Even at eight, he knew how much his parents wanted him to be an airbender. If his Mom and Dad didn't have at least one, then the airbending race would be gone forever. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't bend. He tried staring at the water with his hands out until he couldn't feel them anymore. He made Kya throw icicles at him for hours so he could try to airbend them away. He sat with his Dad during meditation and copied his every move. Still, no bending. 

Not only that, but he wasn't even able to wield a sword like Bumi. He was too lanky, all elbows and knees. Bumi was strong and fit, confident in all of his actions. Whenever Tenzin picked up a sword, he felt stupid. He huffed, blowing a strand of brown hair out of his face. "This isn't fair. I'm so bored," he muttered to himself, kicking a piece of rock in the dirt. In the background, he heard Kya laugh as Lin chased Bumi around with mud, Izumi sitting on her shoulders. 

"Gotta be quicker if you want to run away from us, Bumi!" Lin yelled, and with a twitch of her feet she moved the earth under the boy, shifting his stance and knocking him down. Izumi whooped and hollered from Lin's shoulders.

Tenzin leaned back and looked up at the blue sky. When his dad was home from doing whatever Official Avatar Business he had to do, Tenzin would beg Aang to take him to meditate and airbend. So, early in the morning, Aang would take Tenzin somewhere quiet (it depended on whether they were at their home in the South Pole, or in Ba Sing Se, or traveling somewhere else) and let him do all the stretches and breathing exercises. For an hour or so, Tenzin would quietly copy his dad's every move. Since he couldn't actually airbend, Tenzin was really just stretching. Still, he hoped that one day he would _actually_ airbend, and all those "stretches" would come in handy. Afterwards, Aang would carry Tenzin back home on his back, laughing all the way. Tenzin would stare up at the blue sky as he was on his dad's shoulders and enjoy the feeling of being with his Dad. The best Dad in the whole wide world. 

All Tenzin wanted was for his parents to be proud of him. He truly believed he had the best parents in the whole world. When his Mom would tuck him in at night, sometimes he'd ask her if she wished he was a bender. Katara would bend down and push the hair off of his forehead. "I'd love you whether you were a bender, or a non-bender, or a platypus-bear." Then, she'd put him to bed. And Aang never made Tenzin feel bad for not being an airbender. He loved all three of his kids equally, and never showed favoritism. 

But still. He knew how much having an airbender meant to them. 

Meanwhile, on the training ground, Izumi had started to practice her firebending stances in the corner while Kya sat next to her and tried to make it snow above them both. Lin and Bumi were swordfighting with wooden swords. "Hey guys, can I join?" Tenzin called, standing up. 

"Not now, Tenzin. We're almost done with--hey, watch it Lin!" Bumi said, narrowly missing a wooden sword to the eye. "This isn't a real fight!" 

"All fights are real fights," Lin replied with a smirk. Tenzin ignored his brother, hopping down the stairs until he reached the bottom. 

"I want to join too." Tenzin said matter-of-factly. 

"Come play with us!" called Izumi. She and Kya had just figured out that they could make steam if they worked together, and a thin layer of vapor was covering the ground slowly. Bumi was too into his play-fight to notice anything. He had the high ground and was looking down at his friend, sword in hand. Tenzin walked into the middle of the plain, gaining confidence. 

"Tenzin, if you don't move I'm going to go tell Mom!" said Bumi. 

"No, I want to stay and fight!" Tenzin said back firmly. 

"Oh, let him stay. If he wants to play, let's play!" Lin said, laughing. She was hard on Tenzin, but it was only because he was soft. But he was kind to her and didn't care that she didn't look or act like the other girls her age. So, she liked hanging out with him. 

"That's easy for you to say! He could get hurt!" Bumi said, throwing down his sword and hopping down from the boulder he was on. "C'mon, Tenzin. Let's go." 

"No, Bumi! I'm staying!" 

Bumi was getting more and more frustrated. " 'Zin, I'm not trying to be mean, but you could get hurt, and then _I_ get in trouble with Mom and Dad, and then nobody's happy." 

"I'm still happy," Kya called from her corner. Bumi ignored her. 

"I want to stay. I want to play with you guys, and I promise I won't get hurt." Tenzin said, looking at his older brother with pleading eyes. Bumi groaned and ran a hand down his face. He was tired of arguing, and he reached out to grab Tenzin's arm and force him out of the way. Tenzin was quick, though. All those sessions meditating and learning from his father had taught him how to be quick and nimble like the Air Nomads. He ducked right, eluding his brother. Bumi came back around to grab Tenzin again, but stumbled as Tenzin ducked again. Kya laughed at the spectacle. 

Now, Bumi was really annoyed. "This isn't funny Kya!"

"Kinda is, actually," Lin added from where she was looking on. He shot her a dirty look in response. Tenzin was annoyed at all of them. All he wanted was to be interesting like them, and more than anything he wanted to be included. 

"I can fight, Bumi! I promise!" Tenzin wailed. 

"No, Tenzin you can't! And I'm not going to let you hurt yourself!" 

Then, something extraordinary happened. Bumi lunged down to grab Tenzin by the arm. Tenzin deftly moved under his brother, getting low and forcing Bumi over him. Then, from muscle memory alone, Tenzin took a stance that Aang had taught him one morning during meditation. Tenzin held out his hands towards his brother, just like his Dad would. Something bubbled up from inside him, and energy rushed through his feet, to his stomach, and up to his arms. And suddenly, Bumi blew backwards, skidding across the ground and hitting the wall across the arena with a thud. 

You could hear a pin drop in that moment. Everyone was staring at him with wide eyes and open mouths. Even Bumi was too shocked to be mad. "Tenzin, did you just airbend?" Tenzin looked down at his hands, partly terrified and partly excited. 

"Tenzin, think fast!" yelled Lin, sending a rock flying his way. Once again, Tenzin felt a newly-unlocked energy in his stomach, and twisted his body, channeling all that energy into his legs. Then, he leapt into the air, flying high above the palace. 

"He did it!" screamed Kya, hopping into the air. 

"I did it!" yelled Tenzin as he came back down to the ground. Quickly, Tenzin launched into move after move he'd learned from his Dad, sending gusts of air everywhere. He felt like he could start crying at any moment. Bumi grabbed his hand, all anger forgotten. 

"C'mon," He said, nearly dragging Tenzin behind him, "we have to go tell Mom and Dad!" 

The five kids raced through the palace hallways towards the lounge where all the adults were talking. They didn't bother to knock; they rushed through the door in a clump, nearly knocking each other over. 

"What in the world?" asked the parents, standing up. The kids all started talking at once. 

"Okay, okay, slow down. One at a time!" said Sokka, putting his hands in the air. 

Bumi was the first one to speak. "Tenzin's an airbender!" He yelled. 

The room was silent. Katara took a step closer to the kids. "What did you say?" 

"He's right, we all saw it. He airbended, I promise!" interjected Lin. Kya and Izumi nodded their heads furiously. Aang came from around the table and knelt down to Tenzin's height, holding him by the shoulders. His eyes were wide and his hands were shaking. 

"Is this true, Tenzin?" Tenzin nodded, trying not to jump out of his skin with excitement. 

"Show him!" said an equally-excited Kya, jumping up and down. Tenzin puffed out his chest and took a deep breath, focusing his energy. Then, he pushed his hands forward, sending his father across the room. Aang slid to a stop before he could do any damage. 

"Katara, did you see that? Did you see that? He's an airbender!" Aang screamed, running towards his son, picking him up, and twirling him in a circle. "Tenzin, you're an airbender!" 

"I told you he had the footsteps of an airbender. All soft and light and floaty," said Toph with a smile. 

"Now you can finally stop having babies," smirked Mai to Katara. She gave Mai a gentle nudge with her elbow, then ran over to her family and hugged Tenzin, too. Aang looked down at her, mouth still open in surprise and hands still shaking. 

"Tenzin, this is incredible! Oh, the things I can show you! And you're already so strong, it's incredible!" Aang babbled on and on while his friends watched with smiles. They hadn't seen him this excited in a long time. The weight of restarting a whole culture had been sitting on his back for deacdes. Now, it was like the weight of a thousand worlds was lifted off of his shoulders. 

Tenzin, despite being dizzy from all the hugging, was on cloud nine. For the rest of the day, everyone stood around and watched Tenzin practice shoving things across the room or spinning things around in the air. When everyone else went to dinner, Aang and Tenzin took an extra half hour so they could practice air-scootering. By the time his bedtime rolled around, Tenzin was exhausted. Aang gave him a piggyback ride to the guest room that Zuko had set up. His Mom and Dad tucked him into bed, and then headed to the door to say goodnight to the other children. 

"Mom, Dad, do you love me more now that I'm an airbender?" Tenzin yawned, already drifting off. Katara smiled as Aang put out the light. 

"We love you just as much as we did this morning, and we'll love you just as much tomorrow," she said. "Goodnight, sweetheart." Tenzin buried deeper into his covers as he heard the door close.

That night, down the hallway, Aang could barely sleep. He was too excited, too elated. "I can hear you thinking, Aang," said Katara from her side of the bed. She rolled over and looked up at her husband. "What's up?"

"Katara, he's an _airbender_." Aang whispered, staring up at the ceiling. "I don't know, I just feel...relieved. You're my whole world, our family is my whole world, but now I just feel...I feel..." 

"You feel like you're not alone." Katara finished the sentence for him with a smile. He rolled over to look at her. 

"Yeah, I guess I do. I'm not alone." Aang whispered. Later, when he finally fell asleep, he dreamt of air nomads and sky bison and air temples filled with benders. It was the best dream that Aang could remember having in a very long time. 

Down the hallway, Tenzin was dreaming the same dream.

**Author's Note:**

> I had this idea in my head for a while, so I wrote it down finally! Leave a comment and let me know what you guys think!!


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